I started by making mood boards for each setting and choosing color palettes for each character. Characters that were in “groups” (for example, Duke Frederick has three lords that are part of his court) were given the same color palette.

This pass solidified color palettes for all characters, and I put all groupings together on a single page to give to the rest of the creative team.

Sourcing

The last thing to do was to source pieces and materials. Purchases were made for special or unique items, some items were pulled from stock at ONU, and the rest of the items were made from scratch by me.

Color palette for Rosalind as Ganymede in the forest.

Items made from scratch

“As You Like It,“ by William Shakespeare, takes place in the Forest of Arden and in the court of Duke Frederick. The director’s vision included a posh and modern look for the court that was to be contrasted with a timeless, fantasy-inspired, and vibrant “love games” theme in the forest.

The second pass was after meeting with director Raphael Massie and getting his notes. I went back and adjusted colors and re-worked a few designs.

There were also several looks that were added by our director, including wedding outfits for all four couples that get married at the end of the show. Some colors were also switched due to what was available.

Scroll down to see production photos!

Here are the two initial designs for Celia, played by Fiona Burau. Included in each slide was the actor’s headshot, pencil sketch, inspiration images, color palette, and the colored digital render. The final designs kept the overall silhouette, but other details changed.

The first design pass was a slideshow that I showed to the director several months before rehearsals started. It included moodboards, pencil sketches of each character, character renders, and slides with characters grouped.

First Pass